One of the biggest problems many healthcare providers face is their patients' lack of knowledge. Patients may lack knowledge on basic preventative measures, such as why they should exercise, eat right, and not smoke. Patients may also lack knowledge on conditions or diseases they do have, such as how to measure their blood glucose levels if they are diabetic. This lack of knowledge is a problem for healthcare providers because patients who do not know how to take care of themselves are ill more frequently. Thus, they must visit their doctors more often, sometimes incurring additional costs for hospital stays or laboratory tests. This results in greater fees for the patient, his or her insurance company, and often the taxpayers.
An example of this problem is seen in some diabetes patients. Diabetic patients must regularly receive insulin shots and adhere to a specific diet in order to control their blood glucose levels. Unfortunately, some diabetic patients do not understand all the reasons why they should have regular insulin shots or why they should or should not eat certain foods. In addition, many diabetic patients are unaware of the health consequences should they not follow their treatment plan. As a result, such patients are sicker and require more healthcare than those patients who understand all aspects of their diseases. Sicker patients require more healthcare, which is expensive and time-consuming for healthcare professionals, insurance companies, and the patients themselves.
One way this problem is handled is by increasing the amount of education patients receive about their lifestyle choices and/or their diseases. When patients know what they need to do to stay healthy, they are less inclined to visit their doctors as frequently. In addition, if patients understand the health problems that will result from not taking care of themselves, they will be more likely to follow their prescribed treatments.
Educational forms range from pamphlets in a doctor's office to radio announcements to television shows. Paper-based educational material is cheap, easy to produce, and easy to distribute. Unfortunately, pamphlets or articles are limited to words and pictures and are usually quite boring, which makes it unlikely that patients will enjoy and remember reading them. Radio announcements and television shows are more lively and entertaining, but they are broadcast to the general public. Thus they cannot be customized to a particular patient.
Due to technological advances, patients can now be educated using CD-ROMs, the Internet, and multimedia processors. U.S. Pat. No. 5,307,263 by the present inventor discloses a modular, microprocessor-based health monitoring system. The hand-held unit has a display screen, a control button pad, interchangeable program cartridges, and sensors for monitoring a variety of healthcare data. The program cartridges include motivational and educational material related to use of the device, including step-by-step instructions. Acquired data may be transmitted to a data management unit via an interface cable, or to a clearing house via telephone lines. A program cartridge for monitoring glucose levels and a glucose sensor is disclosed for the purpose of caring for children with diabetes.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,597,307 and 5,624,265 by Redford and Stem describe an educational system and apparatus aimed at children which also uses a multimedia processor. This invention comprises a remote control located in a book or other printed publication. A child can read the book while watching the display generated by the multimedia processor, and then press the buttons in the remote control book to alter what he sees.
None of the above education systems allow an individual to automatically access assigned educational programs remotely. The inventions described above provide general educational programs which are not tailored to any one individual. Neither system provides confirmation that an individual has completed the educational program. Neither system allows a healthcare provider nor teacher to easily custom-design which educational programs a patient or individual is to view. Finally, neither system provides a patient or individual access to an unlimited number of educational programs.
Virtually everyone in the modern world is touched by the high cost of health care. With rising costs, fewer and fewer people can afford an optimal level of contact with a physician for treatment of health conditions or preventative care. This situation may lead many members of the population who are in need of health care to believe they cannot afford it. These persons are less likely to seek proper health care when needed.
Further, despite great advances in the field of medicine, there may still be some members of the population who feel threatened by or who harbor a distrust or fear of health care professionals or institutions, for any number of reasons. These persons are also less likely to seek proper health care when needed.
The two factors mentioned above: the high cost of health care and distrust or fear of health care professionals or institutions, may combine in members of the population to prevent such persons from seeking out and obtaining adequate health care.
Therefore, what is needed is a device which can reduce health care costs by performing some functions of a health care professional and at the same time reduce possible distrust of health care professionals and institutions by providing health care functions to a user in a non-threatening manner.
It is an object of the present invention to reduce health care costs by performing some functions of a health care professional.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to achieve the above-mentioned objects through education obtained in an enjoyable and interactive manner.
It is an additional object of the present invention to accomplish the above-mentioned objects in a relatively inexpensive and simple-to-use manner.
It is yet an additional object of the present invention to have the capability to be functionally expanded with interchangeable compact disks further reducing initial cost.
The prior art discloses devices that monitor health related parameters. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,307,263 discloses a modular, microprocessor-based, health monitoring system. The hand-held unit has a display screen, a control button pad, interchangeable program cartridges and sensors for monitoring a variety of health care data. The program cartridges may include motivational and educational material related to use of the device, including step-by-step instructions. Acquired data may be transmitted to a data management unit via an interface cable and to a clearinghouse via telephone lines. A program cartridge for monitoring glucose levels and a glucose sensor is disclosed having the purpose of caring for children with diabetes. However, this device has the disadvantage of having a relatively small liquid crystal display screen, a limited ability to process and store data due to its small size, and limited on-time due to its battery power. Because this invention is directed to chronic ailments, its educational capabilities are likely limited to teaching how to use the device and to teaching about those chronic ailments to which it is directed.
Another example is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,803,625 which discloses a personal health monitor that measures a patient's weight, temperature, blood pressure and ECG waveform. A plurality of monitors may be coupled to a central computer via telephone lines. The central computer may prompt the patients to take medication, measure certain health parameters, supply answers to selected questions or determine patient symptoms based on patient responses to questions. The monitor transmits patient data to the central computer. The central computer compares collected patient data to expected values and triggers an alarm if the data falls outside a predetermined range. A disadvantage of this invention is that communication with a central computer is required in order to implement its educational capabilities. This increases the cost and complexity of the entire system.
Yet another example can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,225 which discloses a personal health monitor and its enclosure. The object of this invention is to provide an enclosure for a health monitor such as the one described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,803,625, discussed above. A disadvantage of this device is that it requires the use of a standard lap top computer as the processing unit which increases the cost of the device.
None of the above-mentioned patented devices benefit from the enhanced sound, video and memory capabilities of a multimedia processor having a CD-ROM digital memory store and operating with a television set.